Green Tomato Pies

One of the joys of having a garden is that you can gather green tomatoes for cooking. Spicy pies made with them have a distinctive flavor of their own. No wonder they’re farm favorites! Many country women bake them with immature tomatoes on the vines at frost time. But some gourmet cooks like to pick a few of the mature full-size green tomatoes earlier in the season for a couple of special pies.

Mature tomatoes turn color quickly, however. Once they are in the kitchen, use them promptly—or at least refrigerate them. Also use immature green tomatoes soon after you bring them to the house. They rarely ripen, but often rot, especially if left standing at room temperature.